The passage of Vermont Act 67 (the Community Schools Act) in 2021 sparked the genesis of an innovative partnership to pilot a new educational model for rural schools across the state. With a mission to create a sustainable ecosystem of Community Schools, the Catamount Community Schools Collaborative (CCSC) is a dynamic research-policy-practice-partnership between the Vermont Agency of Education and the UVM's College of Education and Social Services (CESS).

"Community Schools are resource hubs that provide a broad range of well-coordinated supports and services for students, families, and the broader community," explains CCSC Principal Investigator Bernice Garnett. "Our work addresses systemic issues of inequity in educational and health access among diverse Vermont communities." Along with enhancing the educational missions of school partners, the CCSC reimagines schools as a center of connection for community engagement and support, leveraging the legacy of education philosopher and UVM alumna John Dewey.

Read more about Bernice Garnett and colleagues' work.

Research of this type has contributed to the University of Vermont's designation by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education as an R1 institution, placing it in the top tier of research universities in the U.S.